Patient Portal: Pituitary Adenoma

The pituitary gland is a pea-sized gland that sits underneath the base of the brain. It produces and releases many hormones. These hormones control your metabolism, stress level, growth, ovulation and menstruation in women, sperm and testosterone production in men, milk production, and urine production. Because of its many functions, it is often referred to as the "master gland." A pituitary adenoma is a common non-cancerous overgrowth (tumor) of the pituitary gland. Some pituitary adenomas cause changes in your hormone levels. Many are very small (microadenomas). Some grow very large (macroadenomas) and may push on the vision pathways. Many people who have pituitary adenomas may not have any symptoms and don't realize they have one, especially because the vision loss may occur slowly over a long period of time.